In the two weeks leading up to the survey, 87 per cent of consumers ate a chicken meal or snack purchased from a supermarket and 72 per cent ate a chicken meal or snack from a food service establishment.

While supermarket numbers increased 2.4 per cent and are now at parity with those seen in 2015, food service establishment consumption shows a noteworthy 7.5 per cent increase from 2015.

Consumers’ taste for chicken shows no signs of waning. In the next 12 months, 21 per cent of consumers anticipate eating more chicken from the supermarket and 14 per cent anticipate eating more from a food service establishment. In fact, according to US Department of Agriculture estimates, Americans will eat 92 pounds of chicken per person this year, a record amount.

“People are buying more chicken than last year and plan to buy more next year,” said Tom Super, Senior Vice President of Communications at the National Chicken Council.

“Chicken tops the list of protein being consumed most often per week. And while retail sales continue to be strong, the survey shows that more people are eating chicken away from home, which is good news for chicken producers, food service establishments and the overall economy.”

When asked about the effects of claims on their likelihood to purchase chicken, consumers are most interested in knowing that no antibiotics were used in production of their food, although they were also interested in whether the birds were locally raised.

When prompted, 71 per cent of consumers were extremely or very concerned about food safety, and 57 per cent about hormone and steroid use, even though they are banned by federal law. Only 19 per cent of respondents were extremely or very concerned about the time it takes to raise a chicken.